Institute responds to heatwave in England

Bob Ward, Policy and Communications Director at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science, said: “Temperatures are due to exceed 30 degrees Celsius across large parts of England again today, causing widespread death and damage to the economy, and exposing the lack of a national strategy for dealing with extreme heat. We expect hundreds of vulnerable people across the country, particularly in Central England, to die as a result of the high temperatures over the next 24 hours, and millions of pounds will be lost as productivity is reduced in overheating workplaces. 

“These periods of extreme heat are becoming more frequent and more intense as a result of climate change, and will continue to become more severe for the next few decades until the world reaches net zero emissions of greenhouse gases. Serious politicians confront and tackle the impacts of climate change, rather than pretending they do not exist. Let this be the last summer when the UK is poorly prepared for extreme heat. Today is the day for the Government to get a grip and vow to create and implement a National Heat Risk Strategy to save lives and boost the economy by making us more resilient to heatwave conditions.”